downriggers???

[Kokehead]

Personally I've got a scotty manual, a cannon manual and a penn manual. The one that I've like the most thus far is the cannon. The question is, wich downriggers do you all like and use

[Petty4life]

I use whatever is in whoever's boat im fishing out of. LOL

[Fishman]

I have two cannon uni-troll 10's on swivel bases. Electric Mag 10's are on my list of things to get. That and about 100 more lures. Oh ya, more rods and reels too

[JIGGIT]

my boat came with cannons. i liked some a freind had i fished with better. i have 2 big jon captains pack electrics now. still have not got them all the way mounted. they come with swivle bases. but they have to be bolted to pedistal bases. i dont want to have to go threw that crap when i use them. so ive taken the brackets from cannons and building addaptors so i can put them in and out in a snap. not get them stolen. they run 500 each. unless you get the annidized to match boat color. extra 150 or so. anyone know a macheinist? thats what i need to get them on.

[TheFireman]

I use cannon mag 10's. Simple to use and have never had any trouble with them. The only drawback might be the speed on the older ones, but I put a new mag 10 high speed on this year and it is as fast as any of the others. I've used cannons the most so I can't really comment on the other brands, but I'm sure you'll get plenty of opinions on this subject.

[Trophy Taker]

I also run Cannon Mag 10's and like them alot. That being said I don't care for the tips as they are made out of hardened plastic. I took another guy with me to the Gorge two years ago and he decided to use the electric toggle to "tighten" the ball when it was attached to the storage hook, this caused tremendous pressure on the plastic tip and ultimately caused it to crack. I have since replaced them then drilled them out and installed a carriage bolt from the tip inward so the bolt is hidden in the tube.

[Stryker]

Big Jon Speed Riggers for me. I like the workmanship that goes into them.

[Propnut69]

My first downrigger was a Scotty manual,that thing was a pita as it took two hands to operate. Then graduated up to canon manuals. used them for a little while,then bought a used pair of electric Cannon mini-mags.I put many hours on them ,with only having to replace the switches and breakers. This year I bought a pair of Cannon mag-5's , put them on swivel bases. They have to be the easiest downrigger I have ever used. I love the high speed retrieve. I also like the auto-stop,that is so cool. Last week I had a chance to fish with sockeyeslayer,and used one of his Scotty electrics. It was a very easy unit to operate,and would be one that I would give look at,if I was in the market for another downrigger.

[JIGGIT]

Another Great Thing About Big Jon,s Is They Have Zero Plastic Or Composits. All Stainless And Painted Steel. As Well As Extendable Booms Out To 5 Ft. Booms Have A Tilt Mech. Just Grab Boom Lift And Cable Is Right Next To Boat. No Leaning Over To Grab A Cable Or Release. I Have A 16 Ft Smoker So The Extendable Booms Put Lines Apart Like A Bigger Boat.

[KokaneeReaper77]

I have two cannon DR that I like allot they are manual I wish they where electric the ball is heavy at ten pounds

[Kokaholic]

I have Scotty Electric's. They are the Bomb! If they can stand up to the abuse that Petty has given them, they will stand up to anything!gunfighter

[Petty4life]

i dont abuse them i just finally showed you how to use them rightgunfighter

[Propnut69]

I have two cannon DR that I like allot they are manual I wish they where electric the ball is heavy at ten pounds

Your right that damn weight does get heavy,after you have had to crank it up a bunch of times.

[AFDan52]

I have a Cannon Easy troll manual and a Scotty manual. I like both of them. I have upgraded to Scotty 1099 electrics. Love them.

[BigBow81]

We run 2 Cannon Minimag's along with 2 cannon super minimags. We have ran Big Jon's and cannon's all our lifes. I don't care much for the big jons. But we have never had any problems with the cannons' even the four or five manual's we have had through the years. Cannon or bust!

Casey

[SockeyeSlayer]

I have (2) Digi-troll IV's which are Cannon's best....They have been great unit's with nothing but reliability, I also have (2) Scotty 1106 electric's mid-ship They are simple to use and for the Money I don't think that they can be beat!! I have put an incredible amount of hours on the unit's and they never seem to skip a beat!!
Good Luck in your search
Jared/SockeyeSlayer/RMT

[Lundman]

I have the Scotty's Pro-packs also -- I didn't want to drill any holes in my Lund so I ended up building boxes and mounting them where the rear seats would be located. When I am not using the downriggers I have rod holder I put on in place and they work well. I'll try to attached a pic of what I'm trying to describe.

When we ski or have family boat rides - rear seats are used
When we troller for walleye - quick-draw rod holder in place.
When we troll for kokanee - downriggers.

[Petty4life]

I have the Scotty's Pro-packs also -- I didn't want to drill any holes in my Lund so I ended up building boxes and mounting them where the rear seats would be located. When I am not using the downriggers I have rod holder I put on in place and they work well. I'll try to attached a pic of what I'm trying to describe.

When we ski or have family boat rides - rear seats are used
When we troller for walleye - quick-draw rod holder in place.
When we troll for kokanee - downriggers.

thats kind of a different setup but if it works for you more power to ya...

[Digi-Troller]

We started out using a couple of Cannon manuals and loved them. They were great and very reliable. I traded them away, but I'm sure they continue to serve their purpose. We moved up to mini mags because we were tired of cranking up from deep koke fishing. For the last couple of years we have been running DT IV's and love them.

[BigBow81]

finally got out last weekend and tried the 4 mini mag set up. All i can say is sweet!!!! We have only used 3 in the passed but finally mounted all four on the new boat. I don't think we will ever go back. There is just something about having four downriggers on the boat!!!!

[Lundman]

Just was wondering how many rods do you run per downrigger?

I stack two rods per downrigger and run them 10 feet apart. I put the lower line out further than the upper one and get tangled a very few times and usually I can fish 4 poles on two downrigger with no problem. I'll drop both down -- one rigger with the top lure in the zone and the bottom one 10 feet below that and the other rigger with the bottom lure in the zone and the top lure 10 feet above.

I can see running one rod per downrigger would give you a little more flexiblity with depth control and re-setting would only involve one rod instead of two but usually the fish are running near the same depth - tell us why 4 is better than 3 or 2. What is the reward and why is it sweet???

[maghunter]

I am new to trolling, just got a boat last fall and trolled for kokanee for the first time this spring and I have yet to buy a downrigger. My wife keeps me on a tight budget and I was thinking about getting the Canon mini troll to hold me off until I can afford a real nice one. Does anybody know if this think works or should I just hold off and safe my money and get a bigger one? Also how far back off the releases do you go? I talked to a clerk at sportsmans and he said only about 10 ft or so. Wouldn't the motor noise scare the fish off? And which releases are the best for Kokanee? Sorry I've got so many questions, and thanks for any tips...

[TheFireman]

Maghunter, An inexpesive one is better than none, especially later on in the year when the kokes move deeper. You could use lead core but that is only good to about 40 feet, and you would have to let out a mile of line. So if that is all you could afford for now I would get it. You could always use it as a spare or sell it when you can get new ones. As far as set back behind the ball it depends. The deeper you go the shorter the setback. When the fish are still shallow it is not uncommon for me to run 100 feet back sometimes more. The release that I like the most is the little yellow ones made by offshore. The little releases from Scotty are also good as long as you don't put your line all the way to the back. Haven't used many others so can't comment on them. Don't be afraid to ask questions here. There are a lot of knowledgable people here that will answer your questions.

[Propnut69]

The fireman ,brings some some good points. any downrigger is better then no downrigger. If you are like most of us,you will start out small then graduate up to bigger and better downriggers over time. As for releases,this year I have been experimenting with the three way adjustable releases from Sep's . So far so good,they are a little to stiff to open when new,but I expect that this will change over time. The light action releases from off-shore are a good release also.

[Lundman]

As for releases,this year I have been experimenting with the three way adjustable releases from Sep's . So far so good,they are a little to stiff to open when new,but I expect that this will change over time. The light action releases from off-shore are a good release also.

I know the topic probably needs a new thread but let's discuss releases.

I have tried quite a few and I have continuely come back to the rubberband. I let my lure out to a where I am fishing - put the half-hitch with the rubberband on the line and just CRAM it into any release as far back as it will go. The rubberband acts as a shock adsorber - relays the bite to the pole - and releases at the same point "Everytime" know matter what. When a bigger or stronger fish hits it pops out just like releases are supposed to and I can buy a bag of 1000 for $3.

The Rubberband RULES in my book.